Dear All,
as we have all been throught this little trip down deprivation lane, I am sure we all have ways to deal with the cravings. I could use some new ones and hope y'all will share.
Here are my standard "want a hot fudge sundea but will settle for a warm glass of water and an air sandwich" mind games.

whenever I am hungry, I will drink a glass of water first, a lot of times my body is more thursty than hungry.

the hot bath routine...boring but effective

brush my teeth...again, boring but somewhat effective

distraction of any kind. (crafts to sex, it is all the same to me!)

go hang out in places I generally do not eat...showers, bathrooms...I have the most over plucked eyebrows in the midwest...

take the dogs for a walk...somehow the smell of warm dog poop always kills my appitite

try on to tight clothes...depression and frustration can either send you headlong into the freezer for a 'choco-taco' or make you vow to 'never eat again!'

chatrooms! I can't type and eat at the same time...why don't we have a chat???

anyway, I am sure there are a lot more. Please give me some more hints to get me motivated on this long and tedious journey to a new me.

I read once about a woman who, when she's at home, wears really clinging clothes. Every time she would catch a glimpse of herself in a mirror it would freak/gross her out.
We could all wear one of those cut off tops with a pair of tight leggings. Or shorts. Blah! Even to make ME sick!

How about going to bed at 8:00 so you don't eat after 8:00.

__________________I am a runner!
__________"Wouldn't it be wonderful to take all the evil people and put them over there, then we wouldn't have to deal with them. And all of us good people would stay right here. The problem is that the line separating good and evil cuts right through the human heart." Alexander Solzenitzen

I try to only eat when I am actually hungry (as in my stomach is growling) and then stop when I am comfortable... not stuffed. If I want to eat when I am not hungry or want to eat more than I should, I ask myself the REAL reason for wanting to eat and think of another option. So much of this is a psychological issue.

I take a supplement called Diaplex that seems to help stabilize my blood sugar and I don't seem to eat as much or crave food. It is from Standard Process Inc. and is availble through health practioners like chiropractors without a prescription. This makes a really big difference for me... however it is not considered a weight loss supplement.

Count calories... I know I need to stop around 1500 and FOR SURE by 1700. And of course not eating after 8:00 pm.

Vigorous exercise... the last thing I want to do is pig out after I just worked my butt off. Its just way too much work to ruin it with a huge meal. I also keep a written record of my exercising on a monthly calendar.

I only eat 1/2 of whatever I order at the restaraunt. The rest I take home in a box and enjoy for lunch the next day.

I set small, manageable, measurable goals within short timelines. This helps me to stay focused and not get overwhelmed by the big picture.

If I pig out or skip exercising, I get back on track immediately. I try to be gentle with my failings and proud of every small success. Every positive step I make is a step in the right direction. Minimize the black and white thinking!

Check this web site daily and seek out support from like-minded individuals. I find that posting my weight and measurements and weighing in here every Monday really helps to keep me accountable. I weigh myself every morning but only record my weekly totals.

I just bought a big bag of popcorn. Even if I eat the entire thing (I won't ... I'll share it with the kids), it's still better than eating my usual big bag of Doritos. I think any little substitution can help. Or just reduce the quantity. One summer I lost 20 pounds just by rowing 10 minutes a day and eating a small bag of Doritos a day instead of a large one.

You're funny, Mauvais.

And ummm, let's all get some of Sojo's Diaplex.

__________________I am a runner!
__________"Wouldn't it be wonderful to take all the evil people and put them over there, then we wouldn't have to deal with them. And all of us good people would stay right here. The problem is that the line separating good and evil cuts right through the human heart." Alexander Solzenitzen

Once upon a time, my sister and I were diligent Weight Watchers. After the wednesday night weigh in and meeting, we allowed ouselves anything we wanted to eat for dinner. We really looked forward to our "splurge" and it helped carry us through the week.

Hey, I lost 40 lbs then, must have been doing something right! 'course I've since FOUND about thirty of those forty lbs...sob!

Yup thats the ticket girls, you need to allow yourself to indulge one meal a week. To have whatever you want for that meal. I do not mean eating a whole bucket of chicken, fries and then having a extra large chocolate bar and huge bag of chips for dessert. But if you feel you want Wendy's, McD's,Taco Bell, whatever go for it, for that one meal, and then move on for the rest of the week. And dont forget to drink lots of water!
Virginia

__________________Live, Laugh and Love life!One day, one hour, and sometimes one minute at a time!

What helps me is reading about other people & how they lost weight. There used to be a fantastic magazine called Successful Slimming and it featured REAL stories about how REAL people lost weight. They don't publish it anymore, but I still have a few copies & re-reading them inspires me. I also subscribe to SHAPE magazine & they have a similar feature. I hope one day to be one of the success stories.

The other thing that helps me is to do food prep on the same day I went to the grocery store. If I bag up those carrots, whole grain crackers, broccoli, cereal, grapes, etc, right away then I have a legal nosh all ready to go.

Trying on too-tight clothes works, too.

I'm taking supplements of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) and carnitine. They are enzymes naturally found in foods. They seem to be helping, but so does "being good".

I bought a new digital scale a couple weeks ago - grrr! one of those highly rates ones! cost me about $130 - Intelligentsource or some such name......well it seemed to work ok the first few days (oh yeah! the number is a bit high, but I digress... ).

Well, the last few days I notice that it gives me a different result if I step on it a few times within the span of five or so minutes!!!

Even if the number itself is wrong......I really need to know the rate of change and whether that is accurate or not!

I have similar scales and they also give inconsistent results. It's quite a pain. Not sure what the answer is, sorry, but you're not alone Usually I just get on and off a few times and then use the lowest weight...that must be the 'true' reading surely?!

I have a Tanita weight/body fat scale. It is absolutely accurate everytime and never varies more than 1/2 pound if you weigh yourself more than once. It gives me the same numbers as the doctor's scale and the weight watchers scale. I don't know how accurate the body fat numbers are... but they are consistent so at least you can monitor your progress. I purchased mine online and got a good deal.

thanks for the help, it will help me get back in line. I was on a business trip this week with the exectutive lunches....needles to say I careened off the big calorie clift and cashed...ouch!
now I gotta get my head back on straight and do the right thing. ugh. Love the tight clothes, spandex tip. How scary would that be??? water..help me, but I can't stand the stuff. I Try, lord knows I try...and avoidance, I never have any food in the house, just the basics to keep the cupboards from looking empty, and I never buy chips, as that would just be a disaster waiting to happen. But last night, I ate a bunch..big ole bunch...of cereal while wathcing tv...tried to fool myself it was better than junk food, but the tiny marshmellows didn't fool anyone. *sigh*, back on board today, another day, another chance.

__________________
Ginya

"run from the false golden crust, that hides all the heart break and rust...run to the arms of your youth,
run to the arms of the truth." Michael Nesmith "In the Afternoon"